When we talk about sushi dining, the images of sleek, ultra modern urban interiors with minimalist tabletops often come to mind. In the sea of seemingly uniform sushi restaurants, how do we add a touch of luxury and a stamp of uniqueness to the dining experience? The secret lies in carefully crafted bespoke sushi plates.

Recently, we had the pleasure of working on” statement tabletop” for “Izakaya” restaurant, located in JW Marquis Dubai hotel.

Bespoke sushi plates designing for Izakaya

“Izakya” is conceptualized as experiential sushi restaurant, with a focus on “social sushi” experience – dining in a lively, buzzing environment with a group of friends, under the guidance of cheerful Wasabi Girl, who is there to prepare fresh Wasabi at the guest table, recommend sushi selection and entertain with impromptu fortune reading.

Izakaya experiential Japanese restaurant at JW Marquis Dubai

The restaurant offers a menu of cult Japanese favorite dishes such as authentic Japanese noodles, robatayaki, teppanyaki and sushi, and in-house creations such as Green Tea and Wasabu ice cream. What makes dining in “Izakaya” even more special is Chef Kino’s rare skills in preparing the infamously dangerous Japanese delicacy – “fugu” (blowfish), which brings excitement and tension to the table.

Detail of decor at Izakaya restaurant

The lively atmosphere spreads from the centered sushi bar to the Robatayaki Grill and Yakitory Grill on either sides of the restaurant. The decor is contemporary, sleek and cool, with black wood panels and floors and bright green furniture and neon lighting fixtures.

Logo of Izakaya restaurant

To highlight the uniqueness of “Izakaya”‘s dining experience, our designers worked closely with the F&B manager and Executive Chef on creating glass sushi plates that seal the whole concept with bold and memorable plate design. The creative idea behind our sushi plate designs was to have an edgy custom look, using restaurant’s logo as focal point.

Sushi plate design with Izakaya logo as a stamp on a package

Our designers took a cue from logo’s resemblance to postal stamps, and developed a design where simple geometrical rectangular and square shapes of the sushi plates were adorned with restaurant’s logo on the corner of the plate, thereby creating an illusion of a package that carries Japanese delicacies.

Set of sushi plates with custom “logo as a stamp” design

This nifty idea gave urban flair to sushi presentation and ensured that the food experience will be tied to the restaurant’s brand. The bespoke sushi plates were designed with an interplay of black, silver and clear glass surfaces, which matched the interior and urban cosmopolitan feel of the decor.

Set of bespoke glass sushi dishes by Glass Studio for Izakaya

Tableware intensified the funky, original concept of the restaurant and sealed the story with style.